Sturgill Simpson Calls ‘One Dollar’ Role His ‘Mid-Life Crisis’, Says New Music Is in the Works

In a recent interview on Late Night With Seth Myers, Sturgill Simpson sat down to talk about his role in the CBS All Access original TV series One Dollar-- and dropped a brief hint about some new music. Simpson says his turn as an actor is another step in his personal evolution as the descendant of many generations of coal miners and himself a railroad employee turned musician.

"At no point does it seem an obvious next step to have an acting career," Meyers teases Simpson, who glibly responds, "Well, this is my mid-life crisis," before going on to explain how he earned the role after he was rejected for another role that he auditioned for in LA.

"I didn't end up getting that job, but I think the same producers do both shows and reached out," Simpson relates. He had dinner with the director of One Dollar, Craig Zoble, who impressed the singer-songwriter with his charisma.

"He just had such an amazing, positive energy. I just sort of said, 'If I never do this again, even if I suck at it, this is the kind of person I want to put myself in the hands of, at least for the first time,'" Simpson shares .

One Dollar is a mystery series set in Braden, a small, Rust Belt-area town in post-recession America. As a single dollar bill changes hands, it connects a group of men and women involved in a multiple murder; the dollar bill's path through each episode highlights the class and cultural differences in town. Simpson plays Ken Fry, a Braden resident who worked at the local steel mill until he is laid off.

Simpson says that, in addition to the TV show, he's been working on a new album for some time now. The artist says that it's the only thing his 4-year-old son will listen to in the car.

“We’ve been working on a new one now for over a year,” Simpson coyly admits while talking about his kids. “I’m well burnt out on it already because I’ve had to hear it so many times with him in the car.”